"Queen of Sky" Leads Bloggers' Rights Movement

To combat a recent wave of blog-related firings around the globe and blog-related human rights abuses in places like Iran and China, a new internet movement has taken shape. The movement is led in part by "Queen of Sky," the Delta Air Lines flight attendant who was fired because of her blog in November.

(PRWEB) January 24, 2005 -- A new civil rights movement is sweeping through cyberspace. Its goal: universal rights for bloggers.

The movement began with the founding of the Bloggers Rights Blog on January 4th by Ellen Simonetti, also known as "Queen of Sky," the flight attendant who was fired from Delta Air Lines last fall on account of her blog.

In the new blog, Simonetti has formulated a "Bloggers Bill of Rights," which proclaims that bloggers all over the globe be entitled to:

"Freedom to blog. Freedom from persecution and retaliation because of our blogs."

Simonetti has also compiled a list of 38 and counting "blogophobic" companies and organizations on the Bloggers Rights Blog. She defines "blogophobic" as having fired or otherwise disciplined an employee because of his/her blog.

The other major player in the bloggers rights movement is the Committee to Protect Bloggers. The organization is devoted to protecting bloggers around the world from State-led human rights abuses, such as imprisonment and torture, because of their blogs. Such abuses are on-going in countries like Iran and China. Guided by Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Committee has four primary spheres of activity:

- to serve as a clearinghouse for information on incarcerated members of the blogging community; and on those who have been the victims of other inappropriate uses of State power due to the free exchange of information that blogging allows.

- to serve as a pressure group to force unrecalcitrant governments to free imprisoned bloggers, and make reversal and restitution for tortured and murdered ones.

- to bring to bear the formidable communicative power of the blogosphere to keep pressure on governments to stop

- to act as direct agents in negotiations to free imprisoned bloggers.

The CPB was founded by journalist and blogger Curt Hopkins. Hopkins has enlisted Ellen Simonetti to be a part of the project.

Links: The Bloggers Rights Blog: http://rights.journalspace.com/

The Committee to Protect Bloggers: http://committeetoprotectbloggers.blogspot.com/ Ellen Simonettis blog: http://queenofsky.journalspace.com/

Curt Hopkins blog: http://morphemetales.blogspot.com/

Contacts: Ellen Simonetti: mediaqueen@gmail.com Curt Hopkins: bobfolder@yahoo.com

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